Episode
Reviewed: Childish
Things
(702)
Writer: Paul McCusker
Director: Paul McCusker
Sound Designer:
Nathan Jones
Music: John Campbell
Theme: Putting away childish things
Scripture: 1 Corinthians 13:11
Original
Airdate: 12/17/11
Review Written by:
Ben Warren, Staff Writer
Rating (out of 5):
Episode
Summary
Before a gallery
exhibit of her work, Penny tries a variety of
methods to decide whom she can trust in life.
The Review
I didn't think much of
Childish Things the first
time I listened to it. At the time, I was
too concerned with the premise,
and wondered whether Penny's preoccupation with body language was a
realistic, sensible storyline, and whether it even illustrated 1st
Corinthians 13: 11 at all. Then, as I scribbled down notes for my review, it
dawned on me that this episode was meant to be a comedy.
Duh, right?
Unfortunately, several Adventures in Odyssey episodes don't know
whether to label themselves comedies
or not. We know that
Do Or Diet, Hidden in My
Heart, and Snow Day
fall so clearly within the comedic genre because they are all aware of their
absurd premise, and aim for the funny bone for a full 25 minutes. In
contrast, there are a whole lot of other episodes that wish to be funny (A
Penny Saved is the closest, most recent example of this) but have no
real reason to be labeled comedies at all. They add in several comedic bits—incessant
punch lines, cartoonish characters—but
really only to fill in dead air, and not because the show requires any
additional humour. Adventures in Odyssey
is a humorous show, sure, but sometimes it forgets that it can be—not
should be—funny.
That, I'll admit, is part of the reason why you'll find me writing things
such as "I mildly like" Wooton. People often describe Wooton as the show's
"comic relief". I wouldn't. The definition of comic relief is "the inclusion
of a humorous character, scene or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious
work, often to relieve the tension". Wooton does not help "relieve the
tension" since he is often included within episodes already quite light
which may not require his style of humour. In comparison, whenever Harlow
Doyle is in an episode, we know automatically, for the most part, the whole
show has to be somewhat absurd.
In other words,
Wooton sometimes confuses the genre, the essence, and tone of the show, but
Harlow's presence—ironically
enough—sometimes
clarifies and contributes fittingly to the tone of an episode.
Luckily, Wooton's absurd personality
contributes well to
Childish Things,
one of funniest Adventures in Odyssey episodes I've heard in a long
time. The episode utilizes an absurd premise and goes straight for the
jugular, so to speak. It's an absurd, stupid comedy, but sometimes
hilarious, nonetheless. It makes use of its talented cast and comedic
characters such as Jacques Henri (even Whit gets in on the fun), within
several well-crafted, comedic scenes.
One of these great, Avery-award
worthy moments includes the diner
scene. While I'll admit Kimmy
Robertson sounds like she's reading her
lines, Jess Harnell gives a solid
performance. It's a tough one to pull off; after all, he must deliver his
lines in a manner subtle enough for
Penny not to clue in, but obvious enough for the audience to clue in
on his feelings for her. That moment, especially, really showed their
chemistry while solidifying the audience's
interest in their relationship. This great scene is followed up later
with Penny, Whit, and Jacques Henri in an even better one—it
was comedy gold, with Jacques Henri deserving an Avery award for his
performance.
McCusker seems to share the blame for these hilarious moments:
"How dare you to come back to me like this without the chance to let
me grovel for your work [...] Zis' is a great art gallery tradition.
The artist throws a little snit, and marches out, and the art
gallery owner grovels a little bit to show your work!" and later on "I may
ask her to have an artistic temper tantrum. [...] That will increase sales."
A perfect example of good material being used, well, perfectly by the
actors.
Bob Smithouser of the
Adventures in Odyssey podcast included
Childish Things in his
list of favourite episodes of the season. What good taste he has! I, too,
liked Childish Things,
and significantly more than I liked
A Penny Saved and
A Penny Earned, the two
other episodes in Album 54's
Penny Trilogy. I'll
make use of Connie's final line: "I think Penny will be alright"; yes, if
this is the sort of fun that comes along with her, perhaps she will be.
Rating
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